


Spacey ramen and the idiotic two

by taeggukswitch (rooxynroll)



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alien Biology, Alternate Universe - Space, Arguing, Background Relationships, Bickering, Eventual Fluff, Fights, Fluff and Crack, Humor, IN SPACE!, M/M, One True Pairing, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, POV Uzumaki Naruto, Pilots, Sharing a Bed, Spaceships, Uzumaki Naruto and Ramen, they're intelligent af but also share one brain cell
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-30
Updated: 2019-02-02
Packaged: 2019-10-19 12:17:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 10,950
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17601233
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rooxynroll/pseuds/taeggukswitch
Summary: One spaceship, two shutdowns, The Fightand you brought ramen?[In which Naruto is a pilot, Sasuke is a programmer, and something that should not stop working during space traveling stops working.]





	1. Uzumaki Naruto and his inability to chill out

**Author's Note:**

  * For [lovemayself](https://archiveofourown.org/users/lovemayself/gifts), [tarkus](https://archiveofourown.org/users/tarkus/gifts), [vickyoongs](https://archiveofourown.org/users/vickyoongs/gifts).



> So this began with a Friday night, amazing friends, lots of jokes, a challenge/game, and wine. As most great things do. (There were great snacks, too, most of them Sponsored by Me!) I'd like to thank Them, aka Luu, Juu, Isa, May & Vick, for providing me with great times, huge support and unconditional love ♡
> 
> It's with great pleasure that I'm finally posting the results of that night. Hope y'all enjoy it (I sure did), it's divided into four parts and I'll be posting daily till Saturday, when we'll wrap this up.  
> Buckle up your seatbelts, it's about to get wild(ly stupid).

Naruto hates being alone for too long, but he hates _even more_ being paired for exploration trips with people he doesn’t know. The thing is, Sakura was on honeymoon with her brand new wife, the childhood best friend Ino, and Gaara had to be on vacation _with_ Lee, which they have been planning for _months_ —as they did every time they could spend vacations together—, Neji was already on a mission with Tenten, even Shoji couldn’t go with him, and every other person he’d ever been to a mission with had to be busy doing something else too.

Oh, he did _know_ Uchiha Sasuke, don’t get that wrong. Naruto also happened to know that he was a major asshole. Which was the exact reason why he wishes he could go with _literally_ anyone else.

At least the older Uchiha—Itachi—was _polite,_ despite looking just as cocky as Sasuke, or even more so. Something with the Uchiha genes, apparently.

Damn good at everything, always the top of the class, never failed at anything in his whole life, always got everything they wanted—people like them would never know how it was to be in Naruto’s skin. Orphan, no relatives at all besides the godfather he barely saw, raising himself and finding the time to study and become an explorer, just like Jiraiya was. Maybe this way he wouldn’t feel so alone anymore.

Always having to prove his worth, always getting underestimated.

Well, Sasuke might also be an orphan, but he had his brother, and other relatives. Some quite close, like the cousin who was always with Itachi—Shisui, if Naruto’s memory didn’t fail him.

Above all else, Sasuke had a place to call home.

Naruto had nothing of his family, besides a few bucks to his name, and the stories Jiraiya would tell him.

As their every interaction usually went, Sasuke would probably look down on him. Or ignore him. Naruto wasn’t sure yet which option was the worst.

The mission _per see_ is nothing much—one day, really, thirty-six hours tops, even if Naruto gets carried away with sampling. It’s a small exploration, more time going back and forth even though the planet isn’t that far from them. It’s an inhabited and tiny thing, no signs of intelligent life, but just as interesting to Naruto as any other planet he’s ever been to before. And just as important, and he wants to do his very best, as always.

Sasuke probably deems the mission _unworthy_ of him. He looks like _that_ type of person.

 _Now you’re just being judgmental, Naruto,_ he scolds himself, shaking his head from side to side. _You can’t know that just yet. At least wait to see the superiority look on his face, then you can judge him without any guilt._

Surprisingly enough, Sasuke _apparently_ takes the mission as seriously as him, arriving at the gates barely a minute after Naruto, and greeting him with a nod. If he looks like anything, it’s barely awake, and not at all pompous—although his clothes would contribute to that later if Sasuke decided to as much as look down on him.

His hair is especially unruly, a black mop that still looks like could make entire cities kneel. Naruto can’t say much about that himself, not when his own blond hair looks the best when combing is forsaken.

It’s not even six in the morning, so Naruto won’t hold the fact that not even a word is uttered against Sasuke. Naruto’s not talkative in the mornings, either. Still, he finishes brewing himself a cup of coffee and offers it to Sasuke just as quietly, one arm raising the cup in his direction and an eyebrow shooting up.

That seems to catch Sasuke in surprise before he accepts it, muttering a low, but audible, _“Thanks.”_

Well, this is going way better than anticipated! Naruto can barely remember what he was so anxious about. That is, before Sasuke spits the coffee right back into the cup and makes a disgusted face at it, looking outraged. “This… how much sugar did you put in this?”

His voice sounds like it’s been used for the first time in hours—hell, maybe days—and Naruto would laugh if he wasn’t shocked.

“Uh… Some?” Sasuke scowl deepens, and Naruto rushes for a more _satisfactory_ answer. “Three or four?”

Sasuke puts the cup away, unceremoniously. “I can’t drink this, it’s disgusting.”

“Hey, no need to be rude about it!” _More_ rude about it, he thinks, after all, Sasuke literally spat on the poor coffee.

“I’m not being rud-!”

Kakashi appears, interrupting their argument before it gets anywhere, immediately talking about the mission’s instructions, but Naruto is already positively pissed off now. There’s no saving a mission after giving away your morning coffee only for it to be spat on.

This could only be hell. Thirty-six whole hours of _hell._

The mission was _doomed._ Nothing could save it.

“I could do this alone,” Naruto insists once more, not really caring that Sasuke is right there by his side this time around. He offended his coffee, after all. Screw him and his _feelings,_ if he even had those. “You know I could.”

“Naruto, we’ve already discussed this. Sasuke is accompanying you to take care of the spaceship. He has a few things to test, too, so this is a great opportunity for both of you. Don’t be difficult.” And he reads in Kakashi’s eyes _‘anymore than you already are. Don’t make me punish you. I can and will prohibit you from leaving this planed ever again.’_

He wants to scream, but focuses on brewing another cup of coffee—this time, no sugar. If there is one threat that works with him, it’s the thought of being punished by being locked down on their base. No missions for _troublesome_ Uzumaki Naruto.

It makes a chill run down his spine.

Sasuke’s eyes widen when Naruto passes another cup to him, this time literally putting it on his hand, a mad look on his face that is obviously daring Sasuke to say something. _Anything._

For a moment, it’s like Sasuke wants to, and will, ask why, but he restrains himself from doing so. Naruto is thankful—he doesn’t think he would be able to explain, either.

It’s just the mission. Every mission is _really_ important to him. It’s his chance to prove his worth, and he’s not missing any of those.

– — –

“What is it you’re going to test?”

For a moment, it looks like he’s going to be majorly ignored. Naruto wouldn’t be the first, nor the last. Sasuke isn’t the talkative type, which really doesn’t help his case. He is the perfect image of a pompous snob.

Which visibly isn’t of any bother to him. He looks like he thrives on it, to be honest.

“New system,” Sasuke replies, nevertheless, eyes fixed on his equipment.

“Cool.”

Naruto is _bad_ at this. Despite what people think, he’s not any good at making conversation. Especially not when the other part isn’t willing, exactly like Sasuke is right now. The truth is—and some people would find this outrageous—that Naruto _likes_ the silence. He’s very quiet at his own apartment, with his plants and a small sound system he almost only uses for chill music. Sasuke obviously _loves_ it, the silence that is, no matter who he’s surrounded by. So it shouldn’t really be a problem, the two of them, alone inside a tiny spaceship, traveling together through space. But still, for some reason, Naruto feels like he needs to talk.

Why? He doesn’t want to think about that just yet, either.

“You know, even though you’re not opening your mouth and actually using your vocal cords, I can hear you just as loudly.” Sasuke stops what he’s doing, turning his head to face Naruto. “Is piloting a spaceship that boring?”

Naruto chuckles, tension instantly leaving his shoulders. Damn, he didn’t even know he was that tense.

“Actually, yeah, a little.” He scratches the back of his head, flustered. “Your systems take care of most of the stuff. I can’t even control some of them.”

Sasuke sneers. “Probably for the best.”

That _cocky_ bastard.

“Listen, I would have you know that I am a very good pilot-”

“So I’ve heard.” Sasuke interjects, a ghost of a smirk on the corner of his lips.

“-and I- what? You’ve what?”

He rolls his eyes, head turning back to the equipment. “Heard. You’re making quite a name for yourself.”

“Uh. Yeah.” Was that a compliment? Naruto couldn’t be sure. Sasuke was pretty much mocking him just a second ago. He’s getting whiplash with this whole interaction. “Thanks?”

The other man shrugs. “Just what I’ve heard.”

Of course. What motives would Uchiha Sasuke have to actually have seen Naruto’s piloting? It’s not like there weren’t better things to do at the agency.

Naruto decides silence is safer, but it’s not long before he’s tapping his fingers on the panel. Sasuke did give him permission to ask, didn’t he?

“So… this new system.” He knows he’s got Sasuke’s attention because the little pout of concentration on his lips deepens. “What’s new about it?”

“A lot,” Sasuke replies, typing some things on the foldable keyboard on his lap. Naruto thinks he won’t add anything else, but Sasuke doesn’t sound bothered by the question, so he waits. When he’s done typing, he starts speaking again. “For example, the heating. It will adapt to your body automatically, no need to keep adjusting the ship’s temperature all the time. You’ll set your body temperature and the system will make sure to keep it.”

“Oh, that’s really _really_ nice. I’m always too cold or too hot because I’m too lazy to fix it all the time.” He laughs, and almost misses the way the corner of Sasuke’s lips stretch up in a small smile. A sincere one.

That’s… also nice.

“It’s supposed to fix the autopilot too, but that’s far from being done. You won’t be out of jobs for a long time.”

“Omph, glad to hear that. Although piloting isn’t my _main_ job.”

“Yeah, I know that, _Doctor_ Uzumaki.”

For some reason, Naruto’s blush reaches the back of his neck. Even though there’s a mocking tone on Sasuke’s voice, it doesn’t sound as if he’s mocking his _degree_ in biology, more like he’s mocking Naruto for thinking he didn’t know about it. Which makes no sense, even though they are the same age and graduated together at the Galaxy’s college. Different degrees. No contact at all. Why would _Uchiha_ Sasuke know about _his_ studies?

This trail of though manages to keep Naruto quiet for a long time—fifteen minutes, a record so far—and Sasuke looks content with focusing on his coding. It’s comfortable, this time around, and Naruto even puts a song on.

“‘Ya mind?”

“Ng.” Sasuke briefly shakes his head, and Naruto watched the glint of screen’s light in his dark eyes.

“Thanks.”

He knows he doesn’t really have to, but still finds it necessary to show his gratitude towards Sasuke’s unexpected overall collaboration.

“You’re welcome.” Sasuke shoots back, voice calm and sweet.

— – —

It’s obviously going all too well when they reach half of the expedition and no major disagreement has occurred so far.

Naruto wears the astronaut suit and waits for Sasuke’s permission to leave the ship in order to do his research on the planet they’ve landed on—perfect landing, great partnership between system and pilot, 10 out of 10, Naruto’s seal of approval.

It’s not much of a planet, inhabited and not much variety around, but he finds it beautiful nonetheless. It’s no wonder no one’s been paying it any visits, besides himself.

He has a great time floating around and collecting samples of rocks and other soils until he’s satisfied with what he’s got, in other words, his compartments are full, all test tubes used.

He’s actually eager to go back to the ship, not because Sasuke is there and it’s been almost six hours since they parted, but because it’s almost been _six hours_ and Naruto really needs to shower and change his clothes urgently. That thing about getting too hot inside the spaceship, that was _nothing_ compared to the space suit.

Sasuke greets him from the same chair he was when Naruto left, looking like he hasn’t blinked much less moved for the past six hours.

“Bored?” He asks, sounding rougher than Naruto has ever heard his voice be like.

He probably hasn’t been drinking, either. Which is why the first thing Naruto does after getting out of his suit is getting Sasuke a water bottle.

“Not at all, I used all the test tubes I had.”

“Oh. That was fast. Or were them not enough and you’re going out again?”

“Sasuke. It’s been six hours. That’s really far from fast, I would dare to say.”

His eyes widen a little, then his expression is back to indifference. “Of course. I might need a few more hours, if you don't mind.”

“Not at all. I’m gonna get myself clean, if _you_ don’t mind.”

“Definitely don’t, in fact, I encourage it.” He’s smirking, this time, and Naruto has to physically close his own mouth with his right hand not to look like a dead fish.

Sasuke _really_ needed some damn rest, if he was openly being _playful_ with Naruto. Even goddamn _sassying_ him.

Being inside the spaceship again is refreshing, gravity being really welcomed when you need to take a shower, even though there’s no actual _shower_ in this case. Naruto cleans himself with wet towels and the products he’s brought from home, including his body lotions and perfume, wearing comfy clothes before heading back to the main cabin.

“Hey, I could help you, you know? If you wanted. You should rest your eyes a little. And, you know, eat.”

Sasuke chuckles. “Thanks, but I’m almost done. Then we’re gonna have to wait for around forty minutes before it’s over and we can test it and head back. It’s still on time.”

“Sure, don’t rush it. I brought a lot with me.”

“I can see that.” And maybe Sasuke sniffles the air, probably being able to recognize just how well Naruto smells now. “Although I cannot fathom why would you bring perfume in your survival kit.”

Naruto scrunches his nose at the expression, letting the perfume bit pass by. “Don’t call it like that.”

“What should I call it, then?” He raises one eyebrow, looking Naruto dead in the eye, and at least he’s not looking at the screen for a bit, Naruto reasons.

“Travel backpack!” He answers it proudly, stuffing his chest.

Sasuke laughs, no, he giggles, before looking back to the screen and resuming his read. Naruto comes closer to see the screen too, being met with a lot of lines full of words he doesn’t understand.

“It’s only coding.”

“Fuck if I understand anything at all.”

Sasuke lets out a breath, then sighs. “Fine, I’ll accept something to eat. If _you_ prepare it.”

“Lucky for you, they come in packs so I only have to heat it! I’m the worst cook.”

“Why do you sound happy about it?”

The moment Sasuke turns to mock Naruto with an incredulous look on his perfectly chiseled face is when _it_ happens. All the light inside the spaceship goes out, and the last thing Naruto can see clearly is the look on Sasuke’s eyes going from glee to utmost dread.

He turns back immediately, muttering curses under his breath as he does a lot of things and none of them appear to work.

Naruto realizes he’s holding his breath, so he lets it out and repeats the process as quietly as he can.

It’s a dreadful bunch of minutes, he figures, until the lights are back on and Sasuke literally slumps on the chair, spiritually crying. (He isn’t, really, but Naruto can feel it.)

“We better head back _now_ ,” Sasuke says, assertively. “I’ll send an error report immediately.”

“Agreed.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> after cutting down on sugar, I actually feel Sasuke on the coffee matter. rip
> 
> thanks for reading! see you soon~  
> ♡ [main twitter](https://twitter.com/choccolattae) | [side twitter - tk/fics](https://twitter.com/taegguksgay) | [tumblr](http://taeggukswitch.tumblr.com/) | [curiouscat](https://curiouscat.me/2syub) ♡


	2. Uchiha Sasuke and the challenges of sleep deprivation

Naruto quickly takes his seat, starting the procedures to launch the spaceship. Sasuke busies himself with securing them, all his previous playfulness gone. There’s a literal crease on his forehead and it’s like he’s aged a decade on the span of ten minutes.

At least he looks a little relieved when Naruto succeeds in getting them _off_ the planet.

“I should probably keep my eyes on this all the time until we reach home.” Sasuke’s voice sounds heavy and tired, even though he’s keeping his posture straight.

Naruto is having none of it.

“Dude… that’s like thirteen hours away. And you haven’t taken your eyes off the monitor for the past nineteen hours already.”

“What do you want me to do?” Okay, and now he’s back to being rude again. It’s not his fault, why is Sasuke taking it out on him? “There’s no other choice, Naruto.”

“Fine. I’ll set it on course and prepare us coffee.” He ignores the look Sasuke gives him, it’s probably just a reflex because of the memory of the first coffee Naruto served him. “No need to say it, no sugar on yours, I got it.”

He misses the way Sasuke kind of flinches, deflating considerably as he goes back to work.

He manages to set the course and make them coffee, also heating up a sandwich for Sasuke (he can eat and work, it’s called _multitasking_ ) as he heats water for himself—and the delicious ramen he brought, currently hidden in his backpack.

Sasuke finishes his coffee in two gulps, only judging his ramen for a second as he scrunches up his nose, probably because he’s got no time to be rude about it, and Naruto grimaces in his behalf because _fuck, those are awful, way worse than the coffee back at the agency, how is he drinking that without any sugar in it,_ and he also finishes his ramen and puts the trash away, all of it before the second blackout hits them.

It’s only a second before Naruto starts floating, a yelp of surprise escaping his lips. And every other loose item inside the spaceship is floating as well. The emergency lights are activated, and that’s how Naruto knows they’re fucked _for real_ now.

Sasuke was quick to pin himself to his seat, but he doesn’t look comfortable at all with things fluctuating around him, barely managing to hold himself to the chair and type anything on his keyboard. Naruto grabs a sort of _elastic rope_ near him and does his best to get to Sasuke’s chair, using the rope as a belt around Sasuke’s waist so he can focus on the task at hand instead of, well, keeping himself seated.

Naruto barely hears the “thanks” that leaves Sasuke’s mouth when he succeeds. However, this time around, nothing Sasuke does seem to work, and every minute only adds to Sasuke’s visible frustration.

Naruto bites his lower lip to keep his mouth shut, but that only works for a minute. “Uh…”

“Please just let me work.”

“Don’t get me wrong, it’s what I’ve been doing, but I don’t think this is getting us anywhere…”

And there, he did it, now Sasuke looks furious.

“Just. Let. Me. Work.”

“O-kay!”

Naruto gets himself far from Sasuke as fast as he can, trying not to sigh at the sight of so many things, that should not be floating, drifting inside the spaceship. He tries to make the room less chaotic by storing the loose things away, at least what he can fit inside the cabinets and cupboards, and luckily there isn’t much, to begin with, because this is a small ship. It’s specific for quick expeditions, after all.

… Oh. It is a small ship. Specific for quick expeditions. Quick.

“I can hear you worrying.” Sasuke chastises from his place, still sounding mad. “Stop.”

Maybe the short distance didn’t make much to appease his feelings.

“Haha, no, it’s just… Well, the oxygen, mostly… But the heating, too, and the food… it won’t last a week. Maybe four days, tops? If we eat the bare minimum...”

“I said stop.”

“Sas-”

“They’ll get the error messages. They’ll know something went wrong. They won’t be able to contact us. We’ll get rescue before that. Now, again, stop.”

That shuts Naruto up, albeit with a huge pout and furrowed eyebrows. He’s painfully reminded of how big shots like _Uchihas_ manage to sound superior and patronizing whenever they talk to him.

Naruto wants to storm back to the front of the ship and shake Sasuke out of it, but that would be just too hard to do. And unproductive. So instead, he only huffs.

If Sasuke wants so bad to frustrate himself, let him do it.

He thinks about eating more just to get back at Sasuke, but that would be simply childish, besides really dumb. Even if the agency came fast to rescue them, it could still take a day. Hopefully less. But they shouldn’t waste food out of pettiness.

Therefore, Naruto anchors himself as far as he can, although he’s still able to keep an eye on Sasuke, and grabs his tablet to pass the time. He reads comics without really paying attention to them, then tries writing his log even though that would be a lot better with a keyboard and, you know, _gravity,_ and soon his battery is under ten percent and he’s starting to freak out again.

Sasuke sighs audibly.

“Aren’t you tired? You can go to sleep.”

Uh… yeah, he totally could do that, sure, even though he hated the idea of leaving Sasuke working his ass off alone while he peacefully took a nap.

Problem is… he didn’t pack a sleeping bag.

“Dude how can I even sleep like this?” Naruto tries out, hoping to diverge Sasuke’s attention, or at least find a reason for him to not sleep.

“Just tie your bag to the floor with the elastic ropes, there’s a bunch of them.”

 _Damn._ Sasuke was right, he could do that.

“Nah, I’m good…”

Sasuke stops what he’s doing to give Naruto one apprehensive look.

“Whatever.”

Almost sounds like he _cares_. Naruto chuckles as silently as he can, keeping his lips pressed tightly together.

He wonders if now is too late to start being religious and pray for all the gods out there for Sasuke to solve the system’s problem fast, or the rescue team to arrive. He can feel that Sasuke will give him shit for not packing a sleeping bag… It _is_ basic protocol, after all, and Sasuke just _looks_ like the kind of person who likes to follow protocols very _strictly._

The exact opposite of Naruto, who prioritizes his ramen diet above all else.

Well, it’s not like he doesn’t follow protocols, he does, just not those that keep him from eating ramen. He’s not insubordinate. Usually.

It’s barely an hour before Sasuke sighs like he’s been holding it for a day, and give up.

“I’ve done everything I could and more. I’m sorry. We’ll have to wait for the rescue spaceship.”

 _Sai is going to love this,_ Naruto bitterly thinks. Sai was always complaining about Naruto’s lack of responsibility with basic instructions, but this wasn’t even _his_ fault. Nor Sasuke’s, it was just the damn system that had to have a major fail before they could be back. A system that was supposedly perfect for use, or they wouldn’t allow it on a mission spaceship.

“It’s… well, not ideal, but okay. They’ll come fast, right?”

“Yes. A complete shutdown will certainly grab their attention quickly.”

“Good. Great! So… what shall we do?”

Naruto fidgets, waiting for Sasuke’s answer.

“I’ll… shower as I can and change, but we should sleep. Not much, they can try to contact us or the system might decide to turn itself back on, I don’t know… but we should rest.”

He looks (and sounds) as tired as a person can be, and Naruto sympathizes.

But he also just ruined any chances Naruto had to avoid the sleeping thing. Because Sasuke _should_ sleep, but how could Naruto lightly convince him he didn’t need the sleep too?

_Oh no, I just have insomnia. I don’t sleep._

_I’m a vampire, Sasuke!_

“Yeah, that sounds just about right.” Naruto hears himself answer, then clears his throat before continuing. “There’s one thing I should tell you, though… And now it’s as good a time as any.”

Sasuke raises one eyebrow, and Naruto has to restrain himself from laughing at the sight of the other pilot floating in front of him, eyebrow raised. “Yeah?”

“See, I… well, I didn’t pack a sleeping bag.”

There’s no reason to run in circles around the topic, right? Naruto figures it’s just better to go and say it.

Sasuke blinks, lips briefly forming a small pout.

“You… what?”

“I didn’t bring a sleeping bag, haha, my bad!”

Sasuke looks stern now, expression serious. “Why didn’t you bring a sleeping bag, Naruto?”

“Well, the mission was supposed to be short, right?”

“Yes. But _bringing a sleeping bag is protocol_.” Sasuke’s voice has a lilt that clearly indicates he is losing his patience. Too fast.

Naruto brilliantly ignores it. _There it is, the damn protocol!_

“Yeah but… I wanted to bring in some ramen!”

“Some… what?” Sasuke furrows his eyebrows, then raise them as if he’s just understood what Naruto has said. “You left your sleeping bag… which is protocol, and brought ramen instead? To a mission?”

Naruto scratches the back of his head, incredibly embarrassed even though he shouldn’t be. It’s just how he is, after all, nothing new.

“Yes.” He answers, smiling and almost closing his eyes.

Sasuke looks like he wants to scream.

And it must be the conditions surrounding them, the stress he just went under and still is, the hours without sleep and not even a quick rest, even the taste of the awful coffee without the addition of any sugar to it, but he does just that.

“You’re an idiot!” Sasuke shouts at him, god damn, over a fucking _sleeping bag._

This is ridiculous. Naruto is undoubtedly outraged by the situation.

“Excuse me?”

“Idiot! Why would you leave the damn sleeping bag behind to bring in more food, when there’s already enough food inside the spaceship?!”

“Well, usually there are beds, too!”

“But this is a small ship, and you knew so!”

“Yeah, I acted on routine!”

“So you do this often, is that what you’re saying to me?” He sounds even angrier, so Naruto deems this discussion useless. He’s not going to convince Sasuke of his needs as a human being right now.

He better not even mention the _serious_ diet he’s in.

“Listen, you’ve got no reason to be screaming at m…”

“Sleep on the air then, good luck with that!”

“Hey, you have no reason to be that mean, too!”

“You! _You’re_ the reason!”

And maybe he didn’t mean that, maybe, if Naruto considered how he had been treated so far, he wouldn’t hold this little outburst against Sasuke, but what happens is: Naruto is also running on god knows how many hours without sleep, six hours walking around a planet with little gravity, and he’s tired. Naruto is so goddamn tired. Mostly, of being treated like this by pretentious people.

So, instead of ignoring it, he snaps.

“Fuck you! I’m the reason? I did nothing wrong. Absolutely _nothing_ wrong! We’re not stranded in the middle of fucking nowhere, drifting into space while we wait for someone to rescue us, because of me!”

Sasuke’s face contorts in too many feelings at once. “Are you saying that this is my fault, then?”

“Well, yeah! If you _insist_ on putting it like this…”

Sasuke launches himself forward, and Naruto tries to do the same, momentarily forgetting there’s no damn gravity and he has no support to get an impulse. Luckily, the lack of gravity also turns Sasuke’s efforts in nothing more than a little push, which he seems to regret and ends up grabbing Naruto’s t-shirt instead.

“Say it to my face.”

“What? That we’re stuck in the middle of the fucking space because of you?” He spits, not really knowing what he’s so angry for, but angry nonetheless. Sasuke’s screaming at him and he’s going to keep fucking screaming back! It’s an eye for an eye, no pulling back.

Sasuke’s face is way closer to his than it should be, and their bodies keep gravitating to each other no matter how much he fights it. Sasuke just looks unaware of that fact, eyes burning holes in Naruto’s head.

“Say it, not like it’s a question. If that’s what you really-”

“Let go of me!” Naruto cuts him, because he’s really not comfortable with their positions. He tries to fight Sasuke away, but the black-haired man only fights back to hold him in place, and it ends up being even more uncomfortable, but neither of them stops. “SASUKEEE!” 

The only thing he gets back from that is Sasuke also shouting his name. 

“NARUTOOO!”

They end up literally spinning. Punches don’t really have any effect, because they’re so entangled, neither can do it properly, and they keep hitting stuff around them which might cause more bruising than the weak punches they managed to hit, but the scratches to his arms will sure be a pain later on, Naruto can feel it burning the skin of his biceps already, where Sasuke has latched on to like he’s some sort of fucking human cat.

It would probably look ridiculous for anyone watching, but there is no one doing so, and for them, it’s pretty intense.

They don’t stop until they’re both panting, clothes sticky to their bodies even though the spaceship heating system is off, and soon it might not be possible to reach the temperature they are now not even if they wear all the clothes they have.

It downs gravely on them as soon as they stop, a gloomy feeling that brings sobriety with it, and Sasuke finally lets him go, tsking and looking away.

Hurt, shame, resentment.

He leaves without saying another word, and Naruto seems to breathe for the first time when he hears a door being locked.

Then everything crashes down on him at once. _Stupid, dumb Sasuke._ What were they even fighting so arduously for?

Half of what he had said wasn’t even what he actually thought. Of course it wasn’t Sasuke’s fault, he was just pissed at the way he was being treated.

He was still mad about it, though, and he wasn’t going to be the one to apologize first. Sasuke certainly wasn’t going to do that, either, so Naruto figures this is what it’s going to be like from now on. Both of them looking pissed and avoiding each other.

Great.

Just… dandy, really.

Naruto does his best to make his pilot chair comfortable, and straps himself in it before Sasuke comes back. It wouldn’t take long, probably, because there isn’t much Sasuke can do with the whole spaceship in shut down. They were lucky the doors automatically unlocked, or they would also be locked inside the cabin, without any access to the rest of the ship.

Something had to work their way, right?

However, Sasuke does take his time, and Naruto is safely strapped to his chair by the time he comes back. No exchange of words happen, Sasuke quietly putting his sleeping bag in place as Naruto sneaks a few glances to check what he’s doing, and once or twice he almost offers help, but refrains.

Sasuke can do it on his own, despite taking a little longer. He would probably turn down Naruto’s help, anyway.

Naruto ignores the feeling deep in his chest, and tries his best to find a comfortable position to sleep, praying that it won’t hurt that much when he wakes up in a few hours.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I too tend to go on an eating spree out of spite, even if it means I'll have to fast later on  
> ˢᶦᵏᵉ, ᶦ ᵍᵘᵉˢˢ
> 
> ♡ [main twitter](https://twitter.com/choccolattae) | [side twitter - tk/fics](https://twitter.com/taegguksgay) | [tumblr](http://taeggukswitch.tumblr.com/) | [curiouscat](https://curiouscat.me/2syub) ♡


	3. The disadvantages of zero gravity and its challenges

It hurts a fucking lot when he wakes up.

It’s even hard not to make any sounds, pain spreading from his neck to his shoulders, and his lower back will most certainly kill him, and he should keep it quiet because _Sasuke, on his comfy sleeping bag, would probably sleep peacefully until rescue came, and Naruto making noises and unnecessarily waking him up would only dampen even more the mood and worsen their already fragile relationship and-_

“Did you really think you could sleep like that?” Sasuke’s voice is low, but not rough. He doesn’t sound like someone who had just woken up.

Naruto huffs, as stubborn as ever. “I _did_ sleep.”

And he says that only because he’s headstrong, since he’s not feeling rested at all.

“Bet you’re feeling _so_ rested, now. Brand new, practically a newborn.” Sasuke teases, and Naruto doesn’t need to see his face to know he’s smirking.

“Oh, shut up, you-”

“We’ll take turns.” Sasuke interrupts him, apparently already out of his sleeping bag because he sounds _closer._

Naruto turns to look, and he has to restrain a whine coming from the depths of his soul because of the angle. And the movement.

_Ouch._

“Turns? At what?” He asks, voice strained.

“Sleeping. One of us will watch the ship for any signals, while the other rests. You can use _my_ sleeping bag, since you failed to bring yours.”

He wants to punch Sasuke’s face as much as he wants to thank him for his incredible kindness.

Did Sasuke really need to accentuate the ownership of the sleeping bag that much? Really. He wasn’t helping the punching urge here.

“... Okay.”

“Just go, I’m not tired. And the chances of the system giving any signs are higher now than they will be later.”

“Sure.”

Naruto realizes they haven’t slept for even one hour, and either Sasuke slept like a rock or he had trouble sleeping as well. Not because of the sleeping bag, Naruto acknowledges as he slips inside and finds nothing but warmth and comfortableness. The ropes tying it to the floor of the spaceship are nothing but a soft pressure over his ankles and chest. He could easily sleep like this.

 _Even the smell is quite nice,_ he thinks, before realizing that this is probably Sasuke’s smell, and turning red from head to toes.

The pain slowly leaves his body, and Naruto falls into a blissed-out state of dreaming.

– — –

He wakes up with something hitting his face.

Maybe it’s Sasuke, with the amazing news that the system is back online, and they’re almost home. (It’s his instinct, thinking of the most optimistic outcome even though he isn’t really expecting it.)

Turns out it’s just his perfume flask, which must have flown out of his backpack through a zipper he forgot to close.

Sasuke’s voice finishes bringing him to reality, a teasing tone to it that almost covers up how ridiculously _tired_ he sounds. “That’s ridiculous, you do realize that, right? You packed perfume but you didn’t pack your sleeping bag.”

Naruto scoffs. “Maybe you’ve made some points.”

“Thanks.”

He carefully scrambles out of the sleeping bag, making sure to leave it as tidy as he found it.

“But you can’t say I don’t smell good.” Sasuke keeps whatever opinions he might have about that to himself. “Did I sleep for too long?”

“Just a little over two hours.”

It’s a lie. Naruto checks the digital clock and he’s pretty sure he’s almost slept for four hours straight. He holds the urge to sigh.

There’s no point in fighting with Sasuke. Again.

“You sleep now, then. I’m fully rested!”

“Hmm. I’ll try. Wake me in thirty, though.”

“Mhm!” Naruto lies, smiling brightly.

It’s almost six hours before he wakes up Sasuke. It’s the most he can endure without making any noise, and he thinks Sasuke might have woken up a dozen times already, despite quickly falling back into sleep. Besides, Sasuke never specified if he meant minutes. He could have meant thirty _hours,_ right.

Nuruto brings him food, if Sasuke sits up he can eat comfortably without floating around the cabin. Naruto thinks he’s getting used to it, mind wandering to the confines of the galaxy as he floats in silence, maybe glancing at Sasuke’s sleeping figure way too many times.

 _Just checking._ He was simply, and exclusively, checking.

“How long?” Sasuke asks, biting his granola bar slowly.

“Hm?”

“How long did you let me sleep?”

Naruto chuckles, looking away. “There was no reason to wake you up. I kept a close eye on everything, there wasn’t a single sign from the ship nor from our surroundings. You needed the rest.”

Silence stretches between them, but eventually Sasuke lets it go, munching the granola bar and looking away.

“You should rest, now.”

That would be great, if Naruto wasn’t feeling restless. Too long confined inside a tiny spaceship, and unable to do anything on top of that. Also, he had been postponing cleaning the scratches on his arms because getting the medical kit would certainly wake Sasuke up. No chance of opening a cabin without making a little mess.

“Hm, don’t think I can, now,” Naruto replies, already going for the said cabinet.

He feels Sasuke’s eyes studying him, and he has the decency to look at least a little bit guilty as he realizes what Naruto is fetching.

“Let… me help you, with that.” He coughs, cheeks dusted the lightest of pinks.

Saying sorry seems to be too much for Uchiha Sasuke, but taking care of Naruto’s injuries is just fine. _Easy peasy._

_At least he has the decency to look embarrassed._

Well, he’s most likely not sorry. Naruto, however… He did say some pretty nasty things, didn’t he? Worst part is: he doesn’t remember most of it. Maybe it’s the sleep deprivation, or the heat of the moment, but he only remembers screams and touching. Way too much physical contact.

Sasuke grabs the medical kit and stores it safely inside the sleeping bag before helping Naruto to sit, elastic rope around his waist tying him to the sleeping bag.

Definitely not comfortable, but he’s been through worse.

“Just hand me stuff, I can…”

The sentence dies on his throat, as Sasuke gives him a very cold look.

Naruto swallows it down, and focuses on the ceiling. Really, it’s nothing big, it’s just itchy and he knows himself well enough to predict he’s going to end up mindlessly scratching at them and making them a lot worse. That wouldn’t do, which is why he should get them bandaged up fast.

They don’t exchange a single word as Sasuke works, carefully cleaning and medicating Naruto’s arms, going as far as bandaging the deeper wounds.

“There’s… on your neck, too, I need you to, uhm, turn a little.”

“Oh, no need to…”

“It’s bad.” And, for a moment, Naruto thinks he might apologize, but Sasuke snaps out of it. “Just look to your left.”

He obeys, even though his survival instinct shouldn’t be to expose his neck to the guy who hurt it in the first place. _Survival instinct_ really wasn't one of Naruto’s most _prominent_ traits.

Sasuke’s hands are even more careful now, almost as if he’s scared of touching Naruto’s neck. But when he does touch, Naruto is grateful for his previous restraint. Sasuke’s fingers are warm on his skin, and he would either blush or shiver if this kept going any longer.

If Sasuke notices his little flinch, he says nothing about it, cleaning the wounds and bandaging them masterfully, despite the lack of gravity. Naruto would have suffered a lot more to do all that by himself.

“Thank you.” He says, because he’s not a jerk.

“You’re cold. Put another jacket on, or something.”

And it’s almost funny how Sasuke seems ashamed to show the littlest of concerns.

“It’s just because I took it off to do this,” Naruto laughs it off, taking the medical kit back. “Wait. Do you have any wounds?”

Sasuke shakes his head. “Nothing really, you barely laid a finger on me anyway.”

And now he’s _clearly_ provoking Naruto.

“That is a lie, unlike some people I just try to keep my nails trimmed!”

“Oh, and what for?” Sasuke raises an eyebrow, stupid, ugly, perfect eyebrow, and smirks. “Always ready for action?”

Was that… Definitely an innuendo? Naruto feels his face heat up as he stores the medical kit back into the cabinet, and he’s refusing to answer to that, too, but a part of his brain seems to be thinking about how this would be the perfect opportunity for letting someone know that _hell yeah, he’s gay._

Which is just stupid, why would he need Sasuke to know that? Besides, he probably already knew. They went to the same University. They worked at the same place. He clearly made an innuendo about it just now. Or not. Naruto wasn’t sure if the straights worried about that kind of thing, it was unknown territory for him.

Just as Naruto knew that Sasuke was probably like Sai, ace, because Naruto never saw him with someone else. Romantically.

He could simply have high standards, too, being an _Uchiha_ and all.

However, Sai did have a boyfriend now, although he wouldn’t tell Naruto who it was just yet.

The moment slips through his fingers as he keeps thinking unnecessary and absurd stuff, as it usually happens, and Naruto wears his jacket back before he starts shuddering. It’s no good that they’re both awake now, but if he isn’t feeling the tiniest bit of sleep, Sasuke has probably never been more awake.

So they eat instead.

“We shouldn’t eat much. Just in case.” He says again, because now they’re both rested and this really should be discussed.

Surprisingly—or not—, Sasuke is a lot more amicable about this dilemma now. “Yeah.”

But being bored and locked inside a tiny spaceship makes the whole _not eating_ a very hard task. They have to be even more careful with the water, so drinking it to distract themselves is just worse.

It’s Naruto who suggests playing tic-tac-toe, and rock-paper-scissors, and pretty much anything they can play to pass the time, and despite Sasuke’s initial resistance, he quickly becomes competitive.

Like, really, competitive. Naruto level competitive.

Naruto is more than thrilled by this realization, and he ends up actually enjoying himself. And their time together. So much, neither of them see the time passing, until they’re effectively hungry and, in addition to that, cold.

“They… should be here already.” Sasuke looks to the cabin’s window, a light crease to his forehead, as if he’s only realizing the time now.

“Rescue?” Naruto asks, trying to sound chill.

Since he’s literally feeling quite chill. Maybe it’s time to put extra pants on. And another jacket. Layers are everything!

“Yeah. This is weird…”

And the mere fact that Sasuke is being honest about this, and showing the smallest of insecurities, makes Naruto’s chest blooms. Because that sure looks a lot like _trust._

“Is there any chance they might not know about it?” Naruto fidgets, he doesn’t want to be pessimistic or make Sasuke worry for nothing, but they should consider all possibilities if they wanted to… well, survive.

No drama, only precaution. The protocol stuff Sasuke was so fond of.

“No. But even so, we should be back already. They’ll come after us either way.”

“But it would take a little longer.”

“Yes,” Sasuke agrees, reluctantly. “We’re not in danger, though.”

“Yes.”

That seems to settle their conversation, both parties satisfied with the outcome, and reassured. They would be fine. Things would work out in the end.

“We should just… use more layers. Of clothes, and a few blankets.”

“You’re right.”

“We should clean ourselves first.”

“Also right. Can I go?”

Sasuke nods, already going for the granola bars. One thing Naruto was sure, he wasn’t going to eat granola bars for at least a whole week. Seven days. No granola.

(He was almost considering eating his ramen raw. Like chips!)

It’s probably the hardest thing Naruto ever did—cleaning himself in zero gravity, that is. He’s got a towel and he wets it, some drops of water escaping and hitting his face, and he drags the towel over his body always slamming some part of himself somewhere. Head hitting the ceiling. Shoulders hitting the cabinets. Really, he’s going back from this mission with more bruises than he’s ever had before during his whole life.

(Not true. Maybe.)

But he manages, and his bathing products certainly help him relax. He’s never been more glad for bringing dry shampoo and body lotions with him to a mission, and look, he’s usually pretty glad with himself for that.

He’s so glad that, after getting his clothes on and fixing his hair, he goes to Sasuke and offers him his things.

“It’s way easier to clean your hair with this! But you can use everything inside, I don’t mind.”

Sasuke is so surprised he doesn’t have a comeback for him now, nor a snarky remark. He simply takes the bag, and floats away.

Naruto feels pretty satisfied with himself for that.

He also eats, cold sandwich and a granola bar, because he’s hungry, but maybe it wasn’t a good idea because now that he’s clean, fed, and considerably warm, he’s unavoidably sleepy.

It would be his turn to sleep, but what if Sasuke wanted the sleeping bag? It is his sleeping bag, after all.

So Naruto goes to his chair and waits, watching the stars and almost falling asleep right there again, despite his horrible past experience.

“Go to the sleeping bag,” Sasuke says, almost whispering. He’s back and Naruto didn’t see it happen.

“No, I’m…”

“There’s nothing we can do besides wait, and it’s getting colder by the hour, we should protect ourselves and rest.”

“So you’re saying…”

“We’ll share,” Sasuke confirms, almost daring him to say something against it.

“Oh.” Naruto is suddenly very awake. “The sleeping bag?”

“Yes. And blankets. I already set it all up. Are you using all the clothes that you can?”

Naruto looks down at himself to check because, yeah, his memory sucks sometimes. Whatever. He never remembers what he’s using. He barely remembers the process of putting clothes on.

“Yes. Uh…”

“Then get inside the sleeping bag.”

He does, more concerned about keeping his cool than anything else. A part of him wants to fight this, but it is cold and it is getting colder by the minute and Sasuke has a _great_ point. It would be childish of him to fight it.

And for what? An unexpected tiny gay crush on his mission partner? _Haha._

“I’m gay.” He blurts out, because he _is_ that dumb.

He’s also not comfortable with sharing a sleeping bag with someone of the sex he’s attracted to who might not know of this little detail. Not that it means anything, but Naruto believes he should know.

Luckily, Sasuke seems to find this very entertaining, because he’s laughing and skillfully following Naruto inside the sleeping bag.

“Are you giving another suggestion to help us stay warm?”

Ten shades of pink pass through Naruto’s face. “No, I…”

“Because me too, but I don’t see the relevance in stating this now if it’s not for that.”

Naruto’s blush deepens.

“Sorry. I panicked.”

Sasuke chuckles, checking if the blanket didn’t scape the ropes before sliding down.

They both stare at the ceiling in silence.

“I have a doctorate in Technology,” Sasuke says, nonchalantly.

Naruto furrows his eyebrows, utterly lost. “I know?”

“Oh, I thought we were stating obvious things about ourselves. You know, another one of your games.”

Naruto shoves him as far as he can, but soon he’s joining Sasuke’s laugh.

“Jerk.”

“Idiot.”

It should be alarming how fast he manages to fall asleep.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can barely take a shower without seriously injuring myself WITH gravity like the fuck but good job on keeping ya selves clean, boys
> 
> I'm kinda on a rush here so no time to re-reread (lol) but this was mostly ready so thanks yesterday's me! hope you're enjoying so far!! any expectations for tomorrow's chapter & this fic's wrap? [eyes] you can talk to me on [twitter](https://twitter.com/choccolattae) or [tumblr](http://taeggukswitch.tumblr.com/) too :] 
> 
> xx roxy


	4. Two bros chilling in a sleeping bag, cuddling because they're very gay

This part is a little fuzzy, Naruto’s brain not being fully awake during all the times that he kinds of changes position and ends up catching glances of Sasuke’s sleeping figure through half-opened lids. The sleeping bag isn’t large, _per se,_ but it isn’t cramped either. For a sleeping bag, that is. Naruto still feels their sides touching no matter in what position he’s in, even when they’re both on their sides, doing the very best to keep _some_ distance, he feels Sasuke’s back against his and their feet end up always tangling somehow. Not that’s in any way uncomfortable, quite on the contrary.

The only thing keeping this from being embarrassing is the fact they’re sleeping, and not uttering a single word about it. Pretend like it’s not happening, and it will be fine. That’s a philosophy Naruto can get by.

One time, he actually lies on his side, but facing Sasuke, who’s _also_ facing him. Perfect _timing._ However, Sasuke has his eyes closed, and he’s sound asleep.

He has a charming face, Naruto decides, in his drowse. Which shouldn’t be new, the talk goes around everywhere Sasuke goes, and Naruto has heard about it a dozen times before. Sakura and Ino, who were literally dating, were their number one fans or something. (They bonded talking about Sasuke. That sounded a little crazy, if you asked him, but Naruto respected that. Relationship goals, clearly. Apparently, at least for both of them.) It’s just like he’s actually _looking_ for the first time. Taking his time and noticing, not glancing and shying away as if being caught staring would cause his imminent death.

(Most times, he’s just bad at noticing things around himself. Others, he’s just really good at running away from them.)

His jaw is sharp around the edges, but asleep Sasuke’s face is nothing but soft, a smoothness to his skin noticeable even through the scarce lighting. His lips are usually pressed in a thin line, but now Naruto can see they’re not that thin after all. There’s definitely some flesh to them, he thinks, as Sasuke parts his lips slightly and lets a small breath of air escape.

Naruto realizes what he’s doing, and rushes to close his eyes. _Sasuke is sleep, Sasuke is sleep, it’s not like he noticed…_

“You’re somehow even louder when you’re thinking instead of speaking.” His voice is heavy with sleep, as if he’s still in the process of waking up or falling back asleep.

“S-sorry.”

Silence. Naruto decides to peek to determine if Sasuke fell asleep, but he’s greeted by a pair of very awaken eyes.

Words—or maybe it’s his breath—are stolen away, and he does nothing besides watch Sasuke in complete silence. He can’t know what to expect, from Sasuke’s furrowed eyebrows to his excruciating eyes, he could be about to lash out or just–

Well, something else Naruto doesn’t want to think about while they’re sharing a sleeping bag alone at some random corner of the space.

Lucky for Naruto, he doesn’t have to think about it at all, not when it’s clearly happening right in front of him. As Sasuke’s eyes go down to his lips and he leans closer, his eyes go up to meet Naruto’s again, attentively. Maybe in question. Maybe just curious. Maybe just teasing him. Or _testing the waters._

Whatever he finds there, in blue irises that stare back in silence, it’s enough for him to push himself further, lips ghosting against Naruto’s.

A shiver wrecks down his body, shamelessly. Maybe Sasuke wouldn’t notice. It doesn’t make it any less humiliating for him.

It’s only a soft touch, Sasuke’s eyes now half-lidded, but still open, as if to gauge Naruto’s reaction. He presses his lips against Naruto’s. And Naruto… wants more. Naruto realizes this like it’s always been there, in some corner of his mind, just waiting for him to reach out to it. It lacks the surprise of a realization, in itself, feeling more like an acknowledgment.

Yes. That’s what this is. _Sorta,_ he adds, still a little reluctant.

Again, Sasuke understands it without Naruto having to voice anything, so maybe he has a point saying Naruto’s thoughts are louder than his voice, after all. He gets closer, hand resting on Naruto’s waist, and closing his eyes as he angled his head a little better to deepen the kiss.

Naruto closes his eyes, too, focusing on the feeling of Sasuke’s lips.

He’s not sure how this is happening. Maybe he’s still asleep, not realizing what was real and what was fantasy, falling asleep while watching Sasuke’s figure, and he was about to wake up incredibly embarrassed at any moment now.

Sasuke comes closer with his body now, parting their lips but quickly pressing another kiss, and another, with slight changes to the angles, almost too eager to feel Naruto’s lips in every way he can.

Naruto tentatively raises his hand to Sasuke’s shoulder, even though he feels his face heating up instantly, and that will certainly not pass by unnoticed. But hell. Why would he care, given the present circumstances?

That seems to be the right move, as Sasuke comes even closer, presses their chests together, and nips at his lower lip.

He thinks he’s going to make a sound, of surprise or disbelief or something, but he ends up only parting his lips, no sound coming out of them whatsoever. That seems to be encouragement enough for Sasuke to nip at them again, this time dragging his teeth through it, but _um. It’s nice?_ Sasuke is careful not to hurt him, and he’s quick to lick the same place of his bite before prying Naruto’s mouth open, wider, and Naruto’s breath shortens.

Maybe there’s a gasp somewhere stuck on his throat, their tongues meet and he thinks he might pass out, certainly he’s too nervous for this even though he’s got no idea _why._

It’s not like it’s his first time kissing.

Still, he can barely coordinate his movements, even though he’s just following Sasuke’s lead. He’s feeling unsure, and there’s a cold sweat on the back of his neck, and maybe a little trembling to his hands. His heart has no reason to be beating this fast, either.

Sasuke leans back with a chuckle, breath fanning over Naruto’s—still parted—lips. He opens his eyes, a little dazed, unfocused, but clear enough to see Sasuke has a smug expression on his face.

“You don’t have to be this nervous to kiss mfgn…” He starts to tease, but Naruto interrupts him.

He launches against Sasuke, not as aggressively as he was when they were in a fight, but enough to seal his lips and press Sasuke’s back against the sleeping bag. Sasuke groans, but he’s not exactly stopping Naruto, parting his lips almost as soon as Naruto parts his.

Nothing like a little encouragement to boost his confidence, and what better encouragement than a  _challenge_?

There’s no hesitation to the way he kisses Sasuke this time, maybe because he’s the one leading and Sasuke is incredibly pliant under him, hands locked on Naruto’s nape and back, keeping him close, urging him closer. It’s starting to give him ideas, memories flashing briefly through his mind as he kisses Sasuke non-stop, only ever pulling away when breathing becomes too hard.

His hand travels down Naruto’s spine, slides under his clothes, grabs at his waist. Naruto does the same, although he’s a lot more focused on the kiss, and kissing down Sasuke’s neck.

“Didn’t you sleep at all?” He asks, when Sasuke’s lips distract him, red and glinting and _swollen._ His lips graze the skin of Sasuke’s neck, and he watches a small tremble on Sasuke’s lips with satisfaction. “How did you even know I was…”

“You woke me up when you turned around. With your fist right under my ear.”

“Did I—”

“Punch me on your sleep? Yes. I was going to let it pass and go back to sleep, but then you kept _staring_.”

Naruto does his very best not to laugh. “Oops. Sorry?”

“For which part?”

“The punch?” He laughs, kissing under Sasuke’s ear, guessing that’s where he had hit.

Sasuke’s eyes are soft, not once he looks bothered by any of it. He’s only _teasing,_ Naruto can tell now. “Staring like that is quite uncomfortable too, you know?”

“Oh, yeah, that’s… kinda creepy, uh, sorry about that, too. It’s just… I never realized how pretty you were until I looked from up close. It kinda got to me.”

Sasuke’s cheeks turn a bright pink.

“You… Shut… _Idiot._ ”

“Idiot? That’s all you have to say? I just—”

Sasuke effectively shuts him up with a kiss, and Naruto can already tell this is going to be happening with a certain frequency from now on. It’s just too good a way to end their discussions, both sides quickly letting it go without much thought—or resistance.

That’s how they end up sleeping again, this time cuddled into each other, warmer than ever before.

– — –

There’s a sound of something like a shooter going off, Naruto can’t be sure, as it takes him a while to be pulled out of his blissed-out state and effectively wake up. When he manages, though, Sai comes into focus, and Naruto quickly scrambles to sit up, noticing gravity is back to how it should be.

“Well, that took you long enough. I was already considering emptying a water bottle on you two.”

Sasuke grunts, sitting up as well.

They untangle themselves and Sasuke gets out of the sleeping bag first, looking only averagely flustered with Sai’s presence in their spaceship.

Naruto, on the other hand, is red to the tip of his ears.

“What took you so damn long, huh? We were freezing to death here!” He experiencedly diverts the attention, hoping to stop Sai from saying anything about their predicament.

Of course, it fails majestically.

“Didn’t look like you were minding it at all.” Sai shoots back with an innocent smile, the same smile Sakura always talked about wanting to punch out of his face during their training months. “But now you’re awake, we can go to my ship and resume the mission.”

Sasuke clears his throat, looking to the panel of the ship.

“I should stay here and at least try to determine why there was a system shut down, now that there’s energy again…”

Sai stares at Sasuke, unmoved by his statement. “Commander’s orders are for you to get a hot drink and stay under at least six layers of blankets while I pilot us all back, safely.”

 _And I’m not going against official orders,_ Naruto hears it clearly on Sai’s words. Sasuke does, too, because he looks instantly resigned.

“Um. Sure.”

He gets hot chocolate while Sasuke prefers tea, and Naruto tries not to get hung up on the empty feeling that lingers at the thought they won’t be cuddled up together now—not in front of Sai, even though Sai had literally caught them sleeping together on the same sleeping bag.

This is different. They have no excuses to hurdle together, sharing the same blankets. Sasuke probably wouldn’t even want to, so Naruto is only being dumb. Was that a moment thing? Did Sasuke thought _“Hey, you’re gay, I’m gay, let’s kiss!”_?

That didn’t sound much as something Sasuke would think, but Naruto couldn’t really be one hundred percent sure about that.

“There are beds, too, if you wish to sleep,” Sai tells, back turned to them as he prepares everything to resume their way back.

“I think I’ve already slept too much for that,” Sasuke replies, not really sounding as well rested as he’s claiming to be.

Naruto thinks he could sleep a little more, if he had Sasuke’s warmth beside him. Which obviously won’t happen, and he tells himself that a thousand times just to keep the disappointment at bay.

Still, he looks up expectantly when Sasuke calls his name. He’s holding up the blanket for him, making space right at his left side. “Naruto. Come over already.”

He makes sure to avoid eye-contact with Sai at all costs, as he walks to the bench where Sasuke is and obediently sits besides him, allowing Sasuke to wrap them inside the blankets.

“So… Are you two like, dating?” Sai asks, pretending nonchalant.

Hell, he might not even be pretending. That’s the kind of thing Sai would ask people without batting an eye.

He’s shameless.

“Didn’t get a chance to ask, Sai,” Sasuke answers, sounding annoyed.

“But you were like, cuddling.” Sai presses further, because of fucking course he would.

Naruto sighs in exasperation. His friends are a menace, and Sai is possibly the worst one of them.

“It was cold!”

Before Sai can retort with some snarky remark, or even ask Naruto about his own sleeping bag, Sasuke turns to him and their proximity is enough to make Naruto aware. “Work will be hell when I’m back, but we could grab dinner sometime. If you want.”

Naruto gapes. He ignores Sai’s giggles from the front of the cabin.

Because that meant Sasuke didn’t act on a spur of the moment, right? And that wasn’t a one time kind of thing. Naruto was being asked on a date?

And panicking, again.

The way Sasuke smiles, however, seems to calm down the short circuit going on inside his brain, and Naruto breaths out before replying, despite shakily.

“Uh. Yes? Sure.”

“Nice.” And he sounds just the way he smiles, calm, happy and knowing.

Naruto doesn’t bother trying to avoid melting against Sasuke’s side, preferring _that_ to facing the smug look Sai exhibits on his face for the entirety of the way back, all too pleased with himself as if he had _done_ something to contribute to this development of Naruto and Sasuke’s relationship.

— – —

Sai pats his back, awkwardly. “Congrats on the catch, he’s only like, the hardest man to get, ever. Which makes sense, considering he’s only ever settled for you. And you’re… well, you.”

“Huh?”

Kiba laughs, storing Naruto’s samples away. “Now, not the time nor the place for fake modesty, Naruto. You have mirrors. Your eyes are blue, man. Don’t act like everyone around you doesn’t have at least an innocent crush on you.”

“Ehh??”

“You’re hopeless.” Kiba deadpans.

“And you’re noticing this now, Kiba?” Sai asks, cocking his head to the left bemusedly.

This is too much for him, Naruto decides, ears starting to get hot too.

“I gotta go, catch up later maybe? Bye.”

He flies through the basis maze experiencedly, making a quick stop to grab something to eat, to go, and even some drinks. He opens none of those until he reaches his final destination—the I.T. Department.

It’s late already, but if the energy buzzing through him is of any sign, Sasuke might still be there too, wide awake and working.

There’s a red-haired girl by the door, who looks really surprised when he barges in. Most lights inside the place are turned off.

“Uh, I’m sorry, works hours are…”

“I know,” he interrupts, a little shy. “I stopped by to see if Sasuke was around?”

She blinks, even more stunned. “Uh. He, y—”

“Here.” The voice comes from the back of the room, where Sasuke raises his hand lazily, his back turned to them. “Karin, it’s fine, he can come in.”

Naruto’s face lights up, and he bows briefly to the woman before running Sasuke’s way. Besides them, there’s no one else in the room.

“Figured you might have forgotten to eat.”

Sasuke’s eyebrows shoot up. “You were right.”

“Also brought some energy drinks and coffee. Bitter.”

“Ugh,” Sasuke grunted, and for a moment Naruto thinks he fucked up somehow. “You’re an angel.”

The woman near the front door apparently drops a lot of stuff on the floor, but Naruto is too busy getting red from head to toes. He can’t even be sure if Sasuke was teasing him, or if he was really that moved by his actions.

If he really meant what he said. Was he even that sappy?

That was… Unexpected.

“Um. I.”

Sasuke chuckles, only looking briefly behind them before raising his hand to cup Naruto’s chin and bring him closer for a sweet—yet brief—kiss.

“Miss me already? This won’t count as a date.”

“I know!”

“Just making sure. Thanks.”

He looks sincere, not a trace of teasing to his features now. He also licks his lips, eyeing the food packages with a lot of interest.

“Don’t mention it. How’s the system going?”

“Still no clue about what caused the shutdown. I might be locked in here for a while.”

“Sucks. If you ever wanna test it outside, on a spaceship, you know… Even if only to change the horizons…”

“Are you asking me to be your partner? Heard you never had one of those.”

Naruto sighs audibly.

“Why’s everyone here so noisy?”

Sasuke shrugs. “Beats me.”

Naruto pinched his nose, shaking his head from left to right. “Yeah, it was nice having you around.”

“Despite the fight?”

 _Oh my god. True, they had a fight._ No one knew about this bit of the story, at least that was safe from prying eyes. Naruto smirks, as if Sasuke would know what he was thinking about. Their little secret. “ _Despite_ the fight.”

“Hm.” Sasuke seems to ponder, hand cupping his own chin now. “Will you be leaving your sleeping bag behind every time?”

Naruto punches his shoulder half-heartedly, not making any damage.

“I take it back, you’re insufferable.”

“No take backs, it’s too late now. You enjoy my company. I don’t think yours is that bad, either. I’m just wondering if this partnership will be including cuddles too, that would sure be a plus.”

“Nope, you don’t deserve them. I’m giving up ramen for now on. Let’s eat this before it gets cold, I’m hungry!”

Sasuke looks like he doubts Naruto’s words, a smile spreading through his face as they dig inside the food bags, and Naruto is only a little distracted for a moment.

Enough not to notice he’s smiling the same way, too.  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's a wrap! Thank you for reading this far, I really hope it was enjoyable. Tell me your thoughts, maybe? Even if they are sjkhflkjdhkjsflx, I do speak gay fluently
> 
> Lastly... Naruto was lucky the system shut down completely, or the recording of their fight would be spreading through their workplace like wildfire.  
> (low-quality resolution, but high-quality content)
> 
> (What he doesn’t know Yet is that Sai took enough pictures of them sleeping together & sharing a sleeping bag to fill a whole damn room, and his birthday is near.)
> 
> see you around~
> 
> ♡ [main twitter](https://twitter.com/choccolattae) | [side twitter - tk/fics](https://twitter.com/taegguksgay) | [tumblr](http://taeggukswitch.tumblr.com/) | [curiouscat](https://curiouscat.me/2syub) ♡


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